Method and apparatus for supplying dehydrated air to air-operated mechanisms

ABSTRACT

The apparatus supplies thoroughly dehydrated super-clean air to an air-operated mechanism in a closed dehydration, pressure differential reactivation system. In the operation of the apparatus, dehydrated air, under pressure supplied to an airoperated mechanism, is exhausted from said mechanism as spent dry air at a lowered pressure, but without substantial reduction in volume, and is then without loss of any volume utilized to reactivate one or the other of a pair of dehydrators incorporated in the system. The entire exhaust from the air-operated mechanism is utilized to reactivate one dehydrator, while the other dehydrator gathers moisture from the air supplied to the airoperated mechanism. The arrangement eliminates the need for heat in effecting reactivation of the dehydrators.

United States Patent Wireman 5] Feb. 22, 1972 [54] METHOD AND APPARATUSFOR SUPPLYING DEHYDRATED AIR TO AIR-OPERATED MECHANISMS [72] lnventor:Wallace H. Wireman, 3514 Handman Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45226 [22]Filed: Feb. 6, 1970 21 App]. No.: 9,336

[52] US. Cl. ..55/33, 55/275, 55/62 [51] Int. Cl ..B0ld 53/04 [58] Fieldof Search ..55/33, 62, 74, 75, 179, 387, 55/275, 18; 23/253 A [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,087,291 4/1963 Jackson et al...55/62 3,206,918 9/1965 Robinson ..55/179 3,306,011 2/1967 Dvorkin..55/275 3,022,858 2/1962 Tillyeretal .55/18 Primary Examiner-Charles N.l-lart Att0rney.l. Warren Kinney, Jr.

[57] ABSTRACT The apparatus supplies thoroughly dehydrated super-cleanair to an air-operated mechanism in a closed dehydration, pressuredifferential reactivation system. In the operation of the apparatus,dehydrated air, under pressure supplied to an airoperated mechanism, isexhausted from said mechanism as spent dry air at a lowered pressure,but without substantial reduction in volume, and is then without loss ofany volume utilized to reactivate one or the other 011' a pair ofdehydrators incorporated in the system. The entire exhaust from theairoperated mechanism is utilized to reactivate one dehydrator, whilethe other dehydrator gathers moisture from the air supplied tO theair-operated mechanism. The arrangement eliminates the need for heat ineffecting reactivation of the dehydrators.

9 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure 46 L W q /4 L AIR /8 MOTOR /6 TsT 2ND- 26DESICCANT DESICCANT Z5 CONTAINER CONTAINER 4 WAY AIR COMPRESSOR 3PAINI0FEB22 I972 3,643 A02 J 'TsT 2ND 26 DESICCANT DESICCANT 25CONTAlNER CONTAINER 6 4- 32 4 WAY 34 AIR EXE )VALVE COMPRESSOR 3l/Vl/E/VTOR WALLACE H. WIREMAN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SUPPLYINGDEHYDRATED AIR T AIR-OPERATED MECHANISMS This invention relates to amethod and apparatus for supplying dehydrated air to air-operatedmechanisms. The airoperated mechanisms referred to may be machines,apparatus, or equipment widely varied as to class or category, buthaving in common an air intake port, and a port for exhaust of the airtaken in at the intake port. Air motors, airoperated clutches, airbraking systems and the like, are common examples of air-operatedmechanisms the performance of which may be benefitted by the method andapparatus of the present invention.

The presence of moisture in air, under various circumstances andconditions, has been recognized heretofore as a major source ofdifficulty, and oftentimes failure, in the operation of air-operatedmechanisms of various kinds. At freezing temperatures, for example,moisture in the air supply lines of braking mechanisms or controlsystems can result in icing, with disastrous consequences. The resultantloss of control is particularly hazardous in the operation of aircraft,road vehicles, and even certain classes of stationary machinery thefailure of which might endanger lives or property. Even in the absenceof freezing temperatures, moisture present in various operating orcontrol systems encourages corrosion, which may eventually disable thesystem or seriously affect its operating efficiency or dependability.

An object of the present invention is to provide an improved highlyefficient method and apparatus for supplying dehydrated air toair-operated mechanisms.

Another object of the invention is to achieve high operating efficiencyin connection with the aforesaid method and apparatus, with substantialsavings of power, maintenance expense, and equipment costs.

A further object of the invention is to provide operating air forvarious types of mechanisms, which is characterized by a high degree ofcleanliness, and a total absence of foreign particles, in addition toextreme dryness.

The foregoing and other objects are attained by the means describedherein and illustrated upon the accompanying drawing, in which:

The drawing is a schematic drawing of apparatus for supplying dehydratedair to an air-operated device or mechanism, in accordance with theteaching of the present invention.

The apparatus herein disclosed may comprise an air compressor 6 todeliver air under pressure to a valve 8, which valve may be manipulatedfor directing the pressured air alternately to a first dehydrator l0,and a second dehydrator 12, either of which dehydrators may supply dryair to a machine, device, or mechanism 14 to be air-operated. Theair-operated mechanism 14, whatever its nature, is to have an air intakeport 16 and an air exhaust port 18. The volume of air discharged frommechanism 14 through exhaust port 18, may approximate the volume of airadmitted to said mechanism through intake port 16. At exhaust port 18however, the pres sure of air leaving the mechanism 14 will besubstantially less than the pressure of air entering said mechanism atintake port 16, as is usual where pressured air performs work indriving, actuating or energizing an air-operated mechanism.

Air under pressure may be delivered to mechanism 14 through a feedlineor pipe 20, and may be exhausted therefrom through an exhaust line orpipe 22. Movement of air through the mechanism 14 may be controlledmanually or by automatic means, and may be either continuous orintermittent depending upon the nature ofsaid mechanism.

Each of the dehydrators l0 and 12 may have a first port 24 and a secondport 26 communicating with the interiors of the dehydrators. Eachdehydrator is packed with a suitable desiccant or drying agent forremoving moisture from air delivered thereto by compressor 6 throughvalve 8. As was previously explained, valve 8 may be manipulated fordirecting pressurized air to one dehydrator, while exhausting air fromthe other dehydrator, in alternation. Dehydrator exhaust may be effectedthrough the valve exhaust port 28. Valve 8 may be actuated eitherautomatically, or manually by means of a suitable hand lever 30, tocontrol the direction of airflow through the dehydrators.

The ports 26, 26 may communicate with valve 8 through pipes 32 and 34,the arrangement being such that in one position of the valve,pressurized air from compressor 6 is delivered to dehydrator 10 whilethe other dehydrator is exhausting air through pipes 34 and 28.Conversely, by changing the position of the valve, pressurized air fromcompressor 6 may be delivered to the second dehydrator 12 while theother dehydrator 10 is exhausting through pipes 32 and 28.

The ports 24, 24 of dehydrators 10 and 12 may be rendered communicablewith the air operated mechanism 14 as follows. Both of the ports 24 mayhave connection with feedline 20 through branch pipes 36 and 38 whichintersect the feedline at 40. Between the intersection 40 and each ofthe ports 24, 24 the branch pipes are provided with one-way check valves42 and 44 which act to preclude back-flow of air from feedline 20 to thedehydrator ports 24, 24.

One of the branch pipes, such as 38, may be connected to exhaust line 22by way of an exhaust shunt pipe 46 which communicates also with port 24of the second dehydrator l2; and into the shunt pipe 46 is incorporateda one-way check valve 48 precluding flow of pressurized air into exhaustline 22 from the port 24 of dehydrator 12 when said dehydrator 12 ispressurized.

A second exhaust shunt pipe 50 connects exhaust line 22 with the port 24of the first dehydrator 10, said shunt pipe 50 incorporating therein aone-way check valve 52 precluding back-flow of air into exhaust line 22.Shunt pipe 50 communicates also with branch pipe 36, between check valve42 and the port 24 of first dehydrator 10, as shown.

In the light of the foregoing explanation, it will be understood thatvalve 8 in one position will direct pressurized air from compressor 6,into pipe 32 and dehydrator 10. The air having been dried by the actionof desiccant within dehydrator 10, then passes upwardly through branchpipe 36, valve 42, and feedline 20 which supplies the dried air to theairoperated mechanism 14. From the mechanism 14, the used but still dryexhaust air travels under reduced pressure through exhaust pipe 22,shunt pipe 46, and check valve 48, to and through the port 24 ofdehydrator 112.

Since the exhaust air in pipe 22 has lost much of its pressure inperforming work at mechanism 14, said exhaust air will not unseat thevalves 44 and 52, which valves 44 and 52 are firmly seated by pressureof air emanating from dehydrator 10. Therefore, said exhaust air passesthrough valve 48 and port 24 of dehydrator 12, to enter said dehydratorl2 and pass onward to pipe 34, valve 8, and exhaust pipe 28 whichreleases the spent air to atmosphere.

The air so passed through dehydrator l2 ordinarily will be very dry air,and will therefore have the ability to absorb any moisture that may bepresent in the desiccant of dehydrator 12, and to carry said absorbedmoisture to atmosphere through exhaust pipe 28. By removing the moisturefrom dehydrator 12, the spent dry air exhausted from mechanism 14performs the highly desirable function of reactivating said dehydrator12, or preparing it for use as an efficient air dryer. While dehydratori2 is thusly undergoing reactivation, the other dehydrator 10 isgradually accumulating moisture from the air supplied by compressor 6,until finally, the desiccant of dehydrator 10 reaches or approaches thesaturation point.

Before the dehydrator 10 reaches a state of saturation, valve 8 shouldbe manipulated either manually or automatically, to reverse thedirection of compressed air flow through the apparatus, so that said airmay pass upwardly through the reactivated dehydrator 12, which willthereupon dry the air and release the dried air through branch pipe 38,check valve 44, and feed line 20 supplying dry air to mechanism 14. Theair spend in mechanism 14 leaves through port 18 under reduced pressure,and enters exhaust line 22 whence it is conveyed via shunt pipe 50 andcheck valve 52, to the port 24 of the previously saturated dehydrator10. Said exhaust air so entering port 24 is usually very dry, and willtherefore eagerly absorb moisture from the desiccant of dehydrator 10,and reactivate the latter. The moisture-laden air from dehydrator leavesthe apparatus through pipe 32, valve 8 and exhaust pipe 28, at pressureapproximating atmospheric.

During the period that dehydrator l0 undergoes reactivation as aboveexplained, the other dehydrator 12 is collecting moisture from thecompressed air fed thereto. At a proper time, preferably before completesaturation of the desiccant of dehydrator 12, the valve 8 is to bemanipulated either automatically or by means of hand lever 30, to oncemore reverse the flow of air through the dehydrators.

It should readily be understood that with every reversal of airflowthrough the dehydrators, one dehydrator acts to dry the air while theother dehydrator undergoes reactivation with the use of dry airexhausted from the air-operated mechanism 14. By the method disclosed,pressurized dehydrated air is continuously available for operating themechanism 14, without a noticeable pressure drop occurring duringoperation of the apparatus.

It is important to note that all of the spent dry air exhausted from theair-operated mechanism 14, is utilized for reactivating one or the otherdehydrator when ever reactivation becomes necessary. By this method, thedesiccants of the dehydrators are demoisturized rapidly and thoroughlyduring each cycle of apparatus reversal, without the aid of heat orother supplemental power, all of which results in simplification of theapparatus and a highly desirable reduction in size and weight thereof.

In the foregoing description, reference was made to actuation of valve 8manually, as by means of handle 30, whenever a dehydrator requiredreactivation. If the apparatus is to be operated manually, eachdehydrator may desirably be provided with a dew point indicator or thelike, illustrated conventionally at 54 and 56, affording the operator ofthe apparatus a visual indication of the condition of the dehydratordesiccant with respect to its moisture content. When the indicatordisplays an indication that the desiccant is approaching saturation, theoperator may manipulate the valve manually to reverse the airflow andthereby place in service the reactivated dehydrator.

If the changeover of dehydrators is to be effected automatically,various means may be devised for the purpose. The drawing suggests byway of example a photoelectric device or scanner head 58, whose beams 60may be sensitive to changes in color or density of the desiccantmaterial within the dehydrator. Thus, when the photoelectric apparatussenses a change in the desiccant which indicates approaching saturation,the photoelectric apparatus may initiate operation of a drive mechanismwithin the casing 62, for actuating the control valve 8, it beingunderstood that the photoelectric device or scanning head may besensitive not only to changes in moisture content of the desiccant butalso to changes in color resulting from moisture changes.

The reference characters 64 indicate translucent windows in the sidewalls of the dehydrators, through which changes in the character of thedesiccant may be rendered changeable in color in correspondency withchanges in moisture content, by dispersing therein a quantity of bluejel or equivalent moisture-indicating material.

The apparatus of the invention operates satisfactorily with a relativelysmall air compressor, for example, one which may deliver 100 c.f.m. ofair with capacity to compress at 100 p.s.i., or about seven atmospheres.Higher or lower air pressures may be employed, however, depending uponthe demand of the air-operated mechanism 14. Especially to be noted isthe absence of the use of heat in operating the apparatus of the presentinvention, whereby operating and maintenance costs are greatlyminimized.

By utilizing the full charge of air exhausted from the airoperatedmechanism 14 in reactivating the dehydrators, without the use of heat,very substantial economies are effected. Moreover, the efficiency of theapparatus is so enhanced as to make possible a substantial reduction insize and weight of the apparatus, with no loss of capacity.

Since all of the dry air supplied to and exhausted from the air-operatedmechanism is reused for for dehydrator reactivation, the presentapparatus may properly be considered a closed dehydration, pressuredifferential reactivation system.

It is to be understood that various modifications and changes may bemade in structural details of the apparatus, within the scope of theappended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention. Thespecific kind of desiccant employed in the dehydrators, and the natureof the indicator utilized for revealing the wetness of the desiccantduring operation of the apparatus, as well as the particular characterof the means employed for automatically actuating the control valve 8 asthe dehydrators approach saturation, are matters of immateriality to thepresent invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A closed dehydration, pressure differential reactivation systemcomprising, a compressor, two dehydrators and an airoperated mechanism,a first conduit connecting the compressor and the two dehydrators, avalve in the first conduit directing the flow of moisture-laden airunder pressure from the compressor to a selected dehydrator, a secondconduit connecting the dehydrators and the air-operated mechanism, valvemeans in the second conduit allowing flow of dry air under pressure fromthe selected dehydrator to the airoperated mechanism but preventing flowin the opposite direction, a third conduit connecting the exhaustopening of the air-operated mechanism and the dehydrators, valve meansin the third conduit allowing flow of dry air exhaust under reducedpressure from the air-operated mechanism to the dehydrators butpreventing flow in the opposite direction, dehydrating means in thedehydrators to remove and hold moisture from the pressurized moistureladen air, the second conduit passing the pressurized dry air to theair-operated mechanism and the third conduit passing the exhaust dry airfrom the air-operated mechanism to the nonselected dehydrator, theexhaust dry air removing the moisture held by the nonselected dehydratorto reactivate the dehydrating means therein, the moisture laden air thenpassing to atmosphere.

2. The system as set forth in claim I wherein the valve in the firstconduit is operated in response to changes in the moisture content ofone of the dehydrators.

3. The system asset forth in claim 1 wherein the valve in the firstconduit is manually operable.

4. The system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the valve means in thesecond and third conduits are one-way check valves.

5. The system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the dehydrating means issubject to change under varying moisture conditions and means responsiveto such change operating the valve in the first conduit to change theselected dehydrator.

6. The method of dehydrating moisture laden air in a closed dehydration,pressure differential reactivation system, comprising, compressingmoisture laden air, causing the compressed air to flow through acontrolled conduit to a selected dehydrator, dehydrating means in thedehydrator, removing the moisture from the pressurized air, causing thedehydrated pressurized air to flow in one direction through a secondconduit to an air-operated mechanism, causing the exhausteddepressurized dry air from the air-operated mechanism to flow in onedirection through a third conduit to a nonselected moisture ladendehydrator, causing the depressurized dry air to flow through themoisture laden dehydrator to remove the moisture therefrom andreactivate the dehydrating means therein, the then moisture laden airflowing to atmosphere.

7. The method as set forth in claim 6 wherein the pressurized air iscaused to flow through the dehydrator in one direction and thedepressurized air is caused to flow in a reverse direction.

8. The method as set forth in claim 6 wherein the controlled conduit iscontrolled in response to changes in the moisture content of one of thedehydrators.

9. The method as set forth in claim 6 wherein the moisture content ofthe selected dehydrator causes the control of the flow of the compressedair to shift to the reactivated dehydrator.

2. The system as set forth in claim 1 wherein the valve in the firstconduit is operated in response to changes in the moisture content ofone of the dehydrators.
 3. The system as set forth in claim 1 whereinthe valve in the first conduit is manually operable.
 4. The system asset forth in claim 1 wherein the valve means in the second and thirdconduits are one-way check valves.
 5. The system as set forth in claim 1wherein the dehydrating means is subject to change under varyingmoisture conditions and means responsive to such change operating thevalve in the first conduit to change the selected dehydrator.
 6. Themethod of dehydrating moisture laden air in a closed dehydration,pressure differential reactivation system, comprising, compressingmoisture laden air, causing the compressed air to flow through acontrolled conduit to a selected dehydrator, dehydrating means in thedehydrator, removing the moisture from the pressurized air, causing thedehydrated pressurized air to flow in one direction through a secondconduit to an air-operated mechanism, causing the exhausteddepressurized dry air from the air-operated mechanism to flow in onedirection through a third conduit to a nonselected moisture ladendehydrator, causing the depressurized dry air to flow through themoisture laden dehydrator to remove the moisture therefrom andreactivate the dehydrating means therein, the then moisture laden airflowing to atmosphere.
 7. The method as set forth in claim 6 wherein thepressurized air is caused to flow through the dehydrator in onedirection and the depressurized air is caused to flow in a reversedirection.
 8. The method as set forth in claim 6 wherein the controlledconduit is controlled in response to changes in the moisture content ofone of the dehydrators.
 9. The method as set forth in claim 6 whereinthe moisture content of the selected dehydrator causes the control ofthe flow of the compressed air to shift to the reactivated dehydrator.